(CNN) – If the voters who supported his presidential bid aren’t fired up to support Mitt Romney, the GOP had “better get a fire going,” Rick Perry said Thursday.

“God help us if he doesn’t win,” Perry said in an interview on Fox News.- Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

The Republican Texas governor looked beyond differences that emerged on the campaign trail between himself and the former Massachusetts governor, including the financial industry bailout designed to keep “too big to fail” banks above water.

“I think he understands that too big to fail – and I’ve heard him say that on numerous occasions – is not appropriate, and that the economic models of supply and demand - they work,” Perry said.

The issue of bank bailouts made under the administration of President George W. Bush, however, may be a lasting difference between Perry and Romney. While Romney has said he opposed federal bailout of the auto industry – arguing in his “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt” op-ed that a process of managed bankruptcy would serve the company better – he said as recently as March that the financial industry bailout was a different matter.

“There was a different occurrence that happened at the end of President Bush’s term, and this was that there was a concern in the country that all of the banks were going to go out of business, that there was going to be a run on the banks,” Romney said in Arbutus, Maryland. Concerned with the stability of large banks, he said companies were prepared to pull millions of dollars from their accounts, and with that “there was a fear that the whole economic system of America would collapse.”

Perry had a different take on bailouts on Thursday. “Whether it’s Wall Street or motor companies, is bad public policy.”

When he withdrew from the presidential race after a disappointing finish in the Iowa caucuses, Perry threw his support to former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who ended his own bid this week. As the nomination appeared increasingly to be going Romney’s way, Perry made a late April announcement that he would back Romney.

But should Romney not win in November, Perry may have yet another run up his sleeve. He said in February that the 2012 debates “could be” preparation for a White House run in 2016.

soundoff(582 Responses)

Paul Ryan's Path To Poverty

How about stop putting a drag on my health care premiums with your lowest insured state in the country 50% now thats a number to be proud of. And small government should always have room for forced vaccinations.

May 4, 2012 01:34 pm at 1:34 pm |

Larry Bonkerr

God helps those who help themselves. I guess Perry never got to that phrase in the bible. It was way past page 1.

May 4, 2012 01:34 pm at 1:34 pm |

Republican Class Warfare

I sure hope Romney wins so we can re-live the Bush administration. Remember that? No? Then you will probably vote for Romney.

May 4, 2012 01:35 pm at 1:35 pm |

Wake up people

Jerry, if you're a life long democrat then I'm white. When did you switch sides when a black man became the POTUS? I'll bet you did, If you ever were a democrat....

OBAMA 2012!

May 4, 2012 01:38 pm at 1:38 pm |

emma

Perry, I would never trust you to be a competent, non-swindling president. I also believe Romney's aspiration to become President is far outweighs his ability to do so. Think Romney; think middle class unemployed, job shafting that
turns out to be lucrative for Bain Companies of the world. Also . think of loss of Medicare and high profits to private insurance companies.

May 4, 2012 01:40 pm at 1:40 pm |

Jake

wow! the majority of Americans on WAAAAAY on a different page! God help the USA still trying to recover after EIGHT YEARS of Bush/Cheney/Rove!

May 4, 2012 01:42 pm at 1:42 pm |

clayton

Larry Bonkerr
God helps those who help themselves. I guess Perry never got to that phrase in the bible. It was way past page 1.

Actually Larry, that's from Benjamin Franklin, not the bible.

Jer 17:5 (NIV) This is what the LORD says: "Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD."

Prov 28:26 (NIV) He who trusts in himself is a fool...

May 4, 2012 01:47 pm at 1:47 pm |

curious

From Nixon to Bush, the American economy suffered 28 straight years of budget deficits using the same economic plan Rmoney and the republicans are now advocating. In 2010 republican candidates all claimed that they would create jobs. Republican voters will fall for anything.

May 4, 2012 01:48 pm at 1:48 pm |

Get help

Lets all hope Perry is praying for a Romney win. It did wonders for the Texas wildfires.

May 4, 2012 01:48 pm at 1:48 pm |

Mark

As if God even cares about politics. that is what is wrong with the neo-republicans. They think God is on their side yet they forget taht God wants us to help others, not turn our backs on them like they want to do. Remember Rick, "Render to Ceasar the things that are Ceasars and to God the things that are Gods".

May 4, 2012 01:49 pm at 1:49 pm |

RINO Bil

As far as I am concerned, God saved us ... from a Rick Perry presidency!

May 4, 2012 01:50 pm at 1:50 pm |

Person of Interest

God help those of us that understand the dinosaurs and man didn't hangout together like in the Flintstone's and were indeed separated by millions of years of evolution...if anybody ever listen's to people like Perry.

May 4, 2012 01:51 pm at 1:51 pm |

AEK

Love these right wing evangelical Christians invoking the name of the Lord whenever they want to spew another load of hate and bigotry. I'm sure the "powers that be", no, the real ones, have a special place for the likes of Mr. Death Penalty when they move on. We can only hope!

May 4, 2012 01:51 pm at 1:51 pm |

steven harnack

So I suppose the corollary is that god won't help us if the President wins another term? Or that we are now being punished for electing President Obama? How about that parable about how we ARE being blessed, it's just that some people are to blind to see it? Between now and the election I expect daily broadsides from the Republicans telling us to be very, very afraid.

May 4, 2012 01:52 pm at 1:52 pm |

Max Lowe

Presidential bid? for Perry? Of what the country of Texas? Sorry Rick, your performance in the debates exposed your many deep flaws. Texas could easily do better. Maybe a Governor who is not selling out the state for his pals profit?

May 4, 2012 01:52 pm at 1:52 pm |

longtooth

God has already helped us. The republican primary circus has left town, with Romney the last contortionist standing. Bring on November. Let's get this over with.

May 4, 2012 01:53 pm at 1:53 pm |

mannycl

God help us if Comrade Obama wins in November. We are all going down the cliff with his doom policies.

May 4, 2012 01:56 pm at 1:56 pm |

Weasley

Stupid comments like Perry's are exactly why the GOP should not be in the White House. Until they understand the meaning and magnitude of the First Amendment, Republicans do not deserve the presidency.

May 4, 2012 01:56 pm at 1:56 pm |

Jokesterer

It doesn't matter who wins, either are going to be hilarious. Government is just a $4,000,000,000,000 form of entertainment.

May 4, 2012 01:57 pm at 1:57 pm |

FRANK - LAS VEGAS

The better comment is, If President Obama wins, God DID help us!

May 4, 2012 01:58 pm at 1:58 pm |

Ben

"the economic models of supply and demand–they work."

Yes, they do work...for those in the market. If you can't afford the market price, then they no longer work so well.

Point is... Markets exclude people. And in matters of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, excluding people is not OK.

So there you go. Markets alone don't solve all of the world's problems. GOP - what are you going to do about it?

May 4, 2012 01:58 pm at 1:58 pm |

Jokesterer

And Perry would have been funnier than both put together. Even funnier than Clinton and Bush combined.

May 4, 2012 01:58 pm at 1:58 pm |

Norm

Doesn't matter who gets elected in November.
The Dems win either way.
So...basically I would say God has already helped us.

May 4, 2012 01:59 pm at 1:59 pm |

Norm

Romney and people like him are directly responsible for the state of the US economy today.
Electing Romney president would be like letting the fox gaurd the hen house.

May 4, 2012 02:00 pm at 2:00 pm |

Mortalc01l

Ummmmm Rick Perry, the Man who told us that GOD told him to run.... If there is a God, then he has FORSAKEN you Ricky boy.... God quite obviously wanted you to fail.

I am also fairly sure that God would REALLY hate it if the Republicans won this election, given their hatred for the poor, Women, the environment and their slavish devotion to the ultra wealthy.. Not exactly what Jesus would have liked.